Wedgefield man allegedly threatens son with knife, is arrested

A Wedgefield man was arrested late Monday after his young son told sheriff's deputies his father threatened to stab him with a kitchen knife.

Patrick Junious Whitney, 44, of 35 Troublefield Road, Wedgefield, was charged with two counts of unlawful conduct toward a child.

At 11:32 p.m., deputies responded to a report of a domestic dispute at the home. The suspect reportedly was arguing with his two sons, ages 16 and 10, until they got scared and ran to a neighbor's house, according to the boys' mother.

The older son told deputies he was threatened with a knife. The suspect, however, told deputies he wanted to "show" his son a pocketknife, but both sons and the mother said the man had removed a large kitchen knife from a woodblock in the kitchen.

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The trouble reportedly started when the suspect, who the boys said was drinking earlier in the evening, told the younger son to come in the bedroom so he could watch him kill himself. When the children refused, the suspect reportedly went into the home's bedroom, where they reported hearing him load a bullet into a gun and then heard the gun fire.

When the man came out of the bedroom, the older son reportedly confronted him about his behavior. At this point, the suspect reportedly pulled out the knife and held his arm back as if he were going to stab his son with it, and both boys ran from the house.

The suspect told officers he was "just trying to scare" the children. After being arrested and transported to Sumter-Lee Regional Detention Center, he reportedly said his son "was never going to get off restriction" after he got out.